A Home for the Heart
by SunshineShipper
Summary: Judy and Nick decide to make some changes.
"Today was a great day, wasn't it?" Judy pulls her keys from her purse, the jingling sound filled the quiet hallway. The door opened and she turned back in time to see the look of horror on his features, "What? My apartment? It's not that bad, is it?"

A grin begins to form, "It's perfect size for such a tiny bunny."

She rolls her eyes, begins walking into the room, and flicks the light on brightening everything up, "I thought you said you were going to lay off the bunny jokes, funny man?"

"You're right. You're right. I just needed to get one out of my system," making himself comfortable, he sits at the edge of her bed. One leg crossed over the other, hands pressed into her mattress keeping him up, eyes wandering over the place. Never still for a moment. For whatever reason, she watches him as he does, more interested in him than anything going on around her. And when he finally met her eyes, she felt a sort of thrill from it.

"U-Uh… what about your place?"

"What about it?"

She doesn't respond at first. Instead, she pulls out her chair, still looking at him, and sits, "If my place is that bad-"

"Never said it was bad."

"-Then, your place must be amazing."

Suddenly he's silent. Almost as if something she said hit a nerve, but he never showed. Same grin, same look in his eyes. She watches as his ears twitch a bit. It felt a bit hypnotizing and when she realized he noticed, she cleared her throat forcing a hefty chuckle from him.

"I don't have an apartment."

"Really? A house?" The whole conversation had made him feel uncomfortable. She could tell by the way he loosens his tie and readjusts it.

"No house either."

"Then, where do you…" and it only took one second for him to sigh for her to realize it. He had no house. He had no home. That's why she found him under the bridge, "Oh."

"And I do like your apartment. It's quaint."

"Is that a fancy way of saying it's ugly?" She only says it to get him to smile and it sort of works.

"Eh, it could use some work, but I like it," he went from uncomfortable to grinning and watching her every move. She smiled, at least she tried. It was hard to be under his glare, for some reason, and she silently begged for him to look anywhere else.

"If you make over $200 a day, why not buy an apartment?"

"Sweetheart," at the sound of the nickname, she blushes. Something she immediately regrets, "If I don't pay taxes, what makes you think I'd pay rent?"

She nods, "Good point, but I just think that now that you're a police officer, you should have a place to go."

"I go here," he points out. There's a slight hint of sadness behind his words. An annoyance she wants to push away. She didn't want to see him sad, not if she had any part in it.

Somehow she gained a need to just keep him safe. To protect him from any kind of pain, any kind of sadness, anything that could hurt him. Because that's what they did, right? That's what partners do. Protect. Even if she might be the reason for it.

"You're always welcome here. In fact," she jumps off her chair and strolls over to him, "Why don't you move in here then?"

Despite his laid back look, his heart still fluttered at the offer. Move in? With her? Live together?

"Yeah, we can take turns using the bed while the other uses the floor," he thought she'd laugh back at the joke, but instead she shakes her head, floppy ears moving, "Are you serious?"

"I can think of a few good reasons. There's no room."

"We'll make room."

"There's no kitchen."

"There's a microwave," she points over. He couldn't believe he didn't notice that before, "And if we need to, we can always move. I can't live here forever, right? Anyway, why are you trying to stop this? Do you not want to live with me?"

He quickly shifts his eyes back to her, "O-Of course I'd like to. It's just," any reason he could think of just didn't fit. Why was he trying to stop it?

Her hand touches his. It startles him, "We're always together anyway, right?"

He nods, "Why me?"

It takes her by surprise, "What?"

"Me of all people to want to live with. Me of all people to want as a partner. Why?" He's suddenly well aware of her hand still on his. It's soothing yet still makes him feel nervous.

"Because somewhere down the line, you've become the best person in my life. Maybe it's because you helped save my job, against your will, or because you opened up to me. Either way, you are. All I wanted was to be a cop. That's it, but now I can't think of my future unless you're right there beside me and I guess that means I want you to be here," she breathes heavily and she looks like she might panic, so he grips her hand making her face him.

"My life wouldn't be like it is without you, you know?" her smile seems weak and he smiles back, "Let's do it."


End file.
